Beautiful Lies
by lotusunset
Summary: Everybody lies.  Its a fact of life. Why? To cover the truth and mask it. But a lie is a lie. It will often backfire.  In rare circumstances, however, a lie may bring nothing but beauty.  [JETZULA]
1. Chapter 1

.:**b**.**e**.**a**.**u**.**t.i.f**.**u**.**l**:.:_l_._i_._e_._s_:.

She hung limply in his arms, her plump lips gaped slightly open and her long, dark hair, blowing slightly in the breeze. A few strands clung stubbornly to her porcelain skin. She was beautiful, simply put, this girl whom had washed up on the river bank. But she was almost completely still. If it wasn't for the slight rise and fall of her chest, Jet would have believed her dead.

As he approached the hideout, Jet shifted her weight in his arms, making it possible to reach up and allow one of the ropes to carry them up to the tree top sanctuary. Jet grabbed hold of one of the ropes and tugged it, signaling to be pulled up and as they rose into the air the girl showed the first sign of life other than her shallow breathing. She gave a little grunt of pain as she moved ever so slightly, as if to find a more comfortable position in his arms.

When they reached the hideout, in what seemed like forever, Jet let go of the rope and landed on the crude wooden planks with a louder thunk than usual. Almost immediately numerous freedom fighters surrounded the leader, greeting him.

"Hey Jet!"

"Welcome back!"

They all chimed, their young, innocent faces shining brightly up at their leader. They all completely ignored the girl that laid in his arms...Until Smellerbee swung down from above, landing slightly behind Jet.

"Who's that, Jet? New girlfriend?" She teased, knowing Jet was still being rather bitter about that water girl freezing him to a tree.

"Yeah, Jet! Who is that!?" chorused the younger children, causing Smellerbee to smirk and cross her arms as she awaited an answer from Jet.

"I don't know, " Jet replied truthfully, barely acknowledging Bee's remark, "I just found her washed up on the river banks, west of the town but still south of the busted up dam."

"Somethings wrong with her arm. Even seemingly unconscious, she's holding it weird. Maybe its broken. You should get that splinted as soon as you can, Jet. Need any help?" Smellerbee asked. Jet looked down at her with one of his trademark smiles.

"Sure," He knew Bee was better at splinting things and generally taking care of the wounded than he was. Even if she was a total tomboy, Bee was still a girl, therefore she did have some rather defective motherly instincts, "C'mon," Jet said, pushing through the small sea of young freedom fighters. He moved slowly towards one of the many rope bridges that linked all the tree houses. Smellerbee followed close behind him.

"Has she been awake at all yet?" Smellerbee inquired, Jet sighed.

"No, when I first saw her, I didn't even think she was alive."

"She does look in pretty rough shape. I mean, all she's wearing is her underwear, and even that's in pretty rough shape, all ripped up and stuff." Bee stated matter-of-factly. Jet glanced to Smellerbee, then he looked down at the girl in his arms. He hadn't really noticed she was barely covered up until Bee had brought it up. Jet had been too concerned with saving her life.

But now there was a slight pink blush running to his cheeks. Jet averted his gaze from the girl and looked back down at Smellerbee.

"Thanks for reminding me," He grumbled, pausing a moment and adding, "As soon as you finish splinting her arm, you can find her some decent clothes to wear."

"Haha, fine," Smellerbee said, "You know, she looks awfully...foreign, dontcha think? Her skin is so pale."

"She's freezing cold, Smellerbee. The river isn't exactly warm yet this time of year. I'm sure she'll get some color back in a day or two, "Jet explained, stepping off of that rope bridge and onto another wooden platform. He stopped and looked around for a moment, trying to decide which way to go. He had to put this girl somewhere for the time being, "That hut over there is just being used for storage, right?"

"Yeah, I think so..." Smellerbee replied.

"Then we'll keep her there until we can find somewhere else for her. Maybe once she's better she can stay with you." Jet said, smirking, hoping to get a rise out of Smellerbee.

"What!? No! No way! I'm not sharing my room with anyone! I like my privacy, Jet, and you know that!" Smellerbee protested. Jet received the rise he had been looking for. He stepped off onto the next rope bridge, heading towards the storage hut. Bee grunted, obediently yet reluctantly following him.

From higher up in the trees, other kids looked down and Jet and Bee from above. They smiled and laughed to themselves, gossiping like most adolescents do.

"Who is she?"

"She's awfully pretty."

"Too bad she's too old for you, Duke."

"I bet she's Jet's new girlfriend!"

"What? No way! He's still recovering from being frozen to that tree by the Avatar's water witch friend."

Longshot, who was near the group of gossipers, mearly kept his mouth shut, like usual. He shook his head as he leaned over and took a peek for himself. True, the scene below him did look a bit suspicious, bit Longshot had never really been the type to speculate. He'd patiently wait for Smellerbee to tell him what was going on. He knew she'd tell him. She always did.

Silently, Smellerbee studied the young woman Jet was holding. She looked to be a little bit younger than him. Her fingernails were long, perfectly manicured and polished. Except for the ones that had broken off. Her feet were not hard and calloused. She obviously had some status, never going barefoot anywhere. And Smellerbee still found that her skin was too pale. Even if she did regain some color, the tone would still be damn close to a snowy white. Something about her just didn't sit well with Smellerbee. She was a bit suspicious. Wait, no. She was very suspicious.

When she and Jet stepped off the bridge and entered the storage hut, she spoke up.

"Jet...What if...What if she's Fire Nation?"

Jet looked at Smellerbee with a raised eyebrow as he sat the girl down on the floor. He shook out his arms, trying to regain feeling in them after holding onto that girl for so long. He then went over to one of the many crates and lifted the lid. He began to dig around for some extra blankets and medical supplies.

"Then I suppose...We'll kill her," Jet said emotionlessly, throwing some beat up and ripped blankets to the floor. He'd use some of them as bandages and others as make-shift pillows. He pulled out one last blanket and unfolded it. It was rather nice compared to the other ones. It only had a few rips in it and a couple scorch marks. He sprawled it out across the floor and laid the 'pillow' on top. Jet picked up the unconscious girl again and placed her on top of the blanket.

Smellerbee sighed, she had expected that answer from Jet, so she simply changed the subject.

"What do you want me to use as a splint?" She questioned.

"I dunno, go find something. I'll clean up the rest of her wounds and stuff while you're looking." Jet said, moving some crates around to find one specific item. An eccentric looking green glass bottle that was full of an ointment that fought infection exceptionally well. He usually only used it for emergencies and he figured that this practically lifeless girl was an emergency.

When he finally found it, he pulled it out of the wooden crate with a satisfied smile.

"Alright, I'll be back in a little bit then..." Smellerbee said after she watched him dig around for a while. She turned silently, her footsteps barely audible at all. Jet glanced back at her for a moment as he unsheathed a small knife. Yep, that was Smellerbee, stealthy enough to steal anything without trying too hard. If she had been trying, Jet wouldn't have even noticed she had left.

Using the unsheathed knife, Jet began cutting thin strips off of the tattered and practically useless blankets. He nicked his own fingers a few times, but that was alright. With two whole blankets cut to shreds and his fingers bleeding generously, Jet figured there were enough strips of cloth to last a few days worth of bandage changes. He put away the knife and licked the blood from his fingers, then wiping them on his already dirty pants. He scooted closer to the girl and placed his had to her forehead. She had a slight fever, but it wasn't much to worry about at the current moment. Delicately, Jet brushed all of the dark hair from her face, exposing a few little cuts on her forehead and cheek that he hadn't noticed before. Most were already clotted up or barely bleeding at all. As he studied her more, checking over her and such, Jet concluded that those folded blankets were holding her neck up at a strange, uncomfortable angle.

To fix it, Jet lifted her head up slightly and snatched one of the blankets from under her head. Something was wrong, however. That blanket had been perfectly clean when he had laid it down...and now it was stained red with fresh blood.

"Dammit..." Jet whispered to himself, replacing the bloody cloth beneath her head in its previous position. No sense in dirtying another blanket. When Jet looked at his hand and saw it was also covered in blood, "Dammit!" he repeated, a bit louder with himself for not realizing the true extent of her injuries sooner. True, the injury could have just broken the skin, but there was always the possibility that she had suffered a nasty concussion as well. Or worse, the blow to her head could have permenantly sent her into this statue-like state that was still alive, but barely. Jet grabbed a nearby blanket and wiped off his hands. He took out his knife again and cut a long strip of fabric for a bandage to wrap around her head.

A task that was easier said than done. Her thick ebony hair camoflaged any blood that had tainted it so he had no other choice than to softly part her hair in different ways until he found the wound. After a few tries, Jet found the abrasion that had left a rather large bald spot in its wake. Determined, Jet grabbed the green bottle and pried the cork from the top using his teeth. He spat it out on the floor once it was loose. Jet poured some of the stinky, slimey contents of the bottle out onto his hand and he generously smeared it all over the wound. He had to make sure he got it all and a little more before he wrapped the bandage around her head and tied it up nicely. Once the task was done, he turned her back over slowly and made sure her head was in a more comfortable postion as well as not laying directly on top of the wound.

Meanwhile, as Jet cared for and dressed her other, less serious wounds, Smellerbee hopped around the hideout, swinging from platform to platform searching for Longshot. She had already gathered all of the needed supplies to make a splint for the girl's arm. Now she just needed to vent a little bit...as well as fill Longshot in on what in the world was going on.

"Hey Pipsqueak." She waved as she passed the fellow freedom fighter. As an after though, the tomboy turned around and asked him if he had seen Longshot anywhere.

"Nope. Last I heard he was with the Duke." Pipsqueak told her. Smellerbee grumbled, cursing to herself.

"Well, have you seen the Duke then?" She asked, crossing her arms in annoyance.

"Yep, he went thata way!" Pipsqueak exclaimed in his booming voice as he pointed north.

"Thanks." Smellerbee sneered, making sure she bumped into Pipsqueak and threw him off balance as she passed him. She couldn't believe how stupid that...boy...man...teenager...thing could be sometimes.

Stomping loudly, Smellerbee made her way northbound, grimacing as she clutched onto the shoulder strap of the bag she had used to carry her splint supplies in. Honestly. Who could be that stupid so much of the time? Ugh. So annoying. Smellerbee kept moving through the treetops, still thinking bitter things about most of the freedom fighter boys until she came to the conclusion that they were all stupid just because they were boys and that they'd have something that could be considered intelligence if they thought with their head on their shoulders for once.

While Smellerbee continued analyzing the male half of the human species, off in her own little world, Longshot and the Duke jumped down gracefully in front of her.

"Hi, Bee!" The Duke said, sniffing a long, hanging green booger back up his nose. Before, Smellerbee would have gaged at the sight. But now she was finally getting used to it. That kid was always snorting his snot up.

"Hey." She muttered, grabbing a hold of Longshot's loose shirt sleeve, "I wanna talk to you. Duke, go a way for a little bit. This is big kid stuff."

"But I am a big kid now!" Duke whined. Longshot sent the boy a glare that caused him to look at Smellerbee and scowl before turning around and walking away, pouting. Longshot then looked at Smellerbee, silently asking her what was up and why she needed to talk to him so urgently.

"So I guess you're probably wondering why Jet was carrying that girl into the hideout before, weren't you? Gah, probably not. You don't wonder about anything. But I should still update you on what's going on around here, right? Before the rumor mill turns all of this into something thats totally ridiculous..." Longshot nodded, cueing her to continue, "So Jet just found her laying on the river banks earlier. And he decided to bring her here and care for her and shit. I dunno, but I get a funny feeling about her. There's just...something not right about her. I can't really explain it. Something just smells fishy about her... and its not just her nasty riverwater hair."

Longshot simply nodded again, his face remaining stoic as he listened to her speak.

"Her arm looked kinda funky so I thought I'd be nice and splint it up for her and stuff. Jet has her in one of the storage huts and is taking care of the rest of her wounds. I should probably get back to him soon, he's probably waiting for me or something. " Longshot gave the blabbing girl a rare and tiny smile. She sighed, "And you're totally right, Longshot. How do you do it? I shouldn't judge her before I know her. Hell, I really don't know anything about her at all...So maybe she'll turn out alright. I really hope Jet doesn't...you know...get himself hurt again, though..." Smellerbee trailed off, "Thanks, Longshot, I needed to talk a bit."

He waved good-bye to the girl as she ran off again. Bee waved in return with a big smile. "I'll probably come talk to you again a little later, okay? So don't wander off too far. I don't want to have to ask Pipsqueak where you are again. He's strong, but pretty useless for anything else, I swear it!"

Jet had finished dressing the young woman's wounds and was now leaning up against one of the many crates in the hut, relaxing. It seemed like Smellerbee was taking forever to get back with simple supplies for a splint. With nothing better to do as he waited, Jet began to think of all the possibilities of who this girl was.

She could just be some unlucky peasant girl who fell in the river. Or maybe she was some crazy suicidal daughter of a nobleman. Or maybe she could even be a magical fairy princess.

Jet quietly chuckled at the thought of the girl sprouting wings and flying away. It was a silly, amusing thought, really. He studied her face for a moment. Her features were soft, yet sharp at the same time. She was well endowed for a girl of her age, if she was the age Jet expected her to be. Her chest was almost twice the size of that water-wench's. Wait, what was he thinking? With a perplexed look spread on his face, Jet leaned forward towards the girl, getting a better look of her face. She looked peaceful, yet at war. Almost everything about her was a complete contradiction.

Absently, Jet wondered what color eyes were hidden behind those closed lids. Were they dark and almost black like his? Or maybe bright shining green like an emerald. Perhaps her eyes were the color of a soft sandy beach. She could have eyes that were a icy, piercing ocean blue, like Katara had...but Jet certainly hoped she didn't have the cold, demonic golden eyes that a typical firebender possessed.

No, he didn't want that. He didn't want her to be Fire Nation, she couldn't be Fire Nation...because then he'd have to kill her, and he didn't really want to have to kill her. She was so...pretty...no...beautiful, even in her sleep.

"Sorry it took so long, Jet." Smellerbee apologized, entering the hut with her supplies, "I...kinda got carried away when I was talking to Longshot."

Jet looked up at her, smiling, "Its fine, did you remember to bring her some decent clothes?"

"Aww, shit. I knew I forgot something." Smellerbee grumbled, walking over to Jet and the girl. Bee kneeled down on the floor next to the girl's left arm, slinging her bag of supplies off of her shoulder and onto the floor.

"It's alright, none of your clothes would probably fit her anyway. I'll see if I can find anything for her to wear later." Jet told Bee. He recieved a sigh of relief from Bee, who had begun feeling the girl's arm for broken bones. Ah, there, not a large fracture, but not a small one either.

"I really hope she's totally unconscious right now so she doesn't feel this..." Smellerbee whispered to herself as she took in a deep breath before forcefully popping the bone back in place. The girl flinched a little, but otherwise remained completely motionless. Smellerbee checked her arm one more time, making sure she had pushed the bone back into the right place. Yep, it was practically perfect. She smiled at her handiwork and grabbed the two flat pieces of wood she had found...or rather, stole from Sneers, who was sanding them down so they could become replacement floorboards.

She placed them carefully on the arm, making sure they were the right length before anything else. They'd work, for now anyway. She tied cloth around the pieces of wood tightly, to hold the splint in place. She hoped it wasn't too tight, but then again, if it was too loose, there'd be too much room for movement. Not that the girl was moving around much anyway. When Smellerbee was finally satisfied with her work, she leaned back, resting up against the side of a crate with a sigh.

"So when ya think she'll wake up?" Smellerbee questioned.

Truthfully, Jet replied. "I have no idea."


	2. Chapter 2

_It was raining. Raining hard. The water from the sky was practically falling down to the earth in thick, silvery sheets. Spider web lightning flashed across the sky, large crackling booms soon followed suit._

_"Azula, I think we should stop soon," Ty Lee said quietly, her voice almost completely drowned out by the pounding rain._

_"This storm is getting rather strong, Azula," Mai added in her usual monotone._

_"Yeah, you might not be afraid to be struck by lightning, Azula, but I sure am!" Ty Lee chimed, smiling._

_"Fine. We'll set up camp on the other side of this river," Azula ordered coldly, pulling the reins of her lizard so it'd change direction. They'd get to the river faster if they headed east instead. Mai and Ty Lee turned their mounts as well, following their leader obediently._

_"Are you sure we'll be able to cross? The current is moving quickly, "Mai asked, it was her job to be the pessimistic one._

_"We'll be fine, " The princess told them._

_When the trio reached the river, they stopped so that Azula could deliver some orders._

_"We will go across one by one. If one of us falls, the other two can help her to safety. If we all go together and fall, we all will be swept away by the current," Azula told them, explaining herself, "Go, Ty Lee, then you, Mai."_

_"Sure!"_

_"Right."_

_Ty lee pulled up her reins, signaling the beast to jump on its hind legs and run across the water. Once she was across, Mai did the same. Without emotion, Azula then began her short journey across the raging current._

_Though the lizard was quick, lightning was quicker. A bright flash lit up the sky then almost immediately afterwards came the loud, frightening growl of thunder. Azula's lizard lost its concentration and fell into the current. Azula's expression changed from rather stoic to almost panicked. Almost. Her lizard swam against the current, fighting to reach the shore. Ty Lee and Mai each grabbed ropes from their packs and took turns trying to get a rope out to the princess. Azula let go of the lizard's reins with on hand so she could reach farther for a rope._

_But the current was just too strong. Azula felt the water pry the reins from her other hand, setting the beast free. It quickly swam and scurried out of the water, but it left Azula in the river, trying to swim against the current and catch a rope that had been thrown to her. With luck, Azula finally caught one of the ropes and held on for dear life as she felt Ty Lee and Mai slowly pulling her out of the water. There was another flash and a crack of thunder, which sent the rain falling down even harder, in even thicker sheets. The waves of water grew taller, now getting peaks of white. The current grew faster and stronger as well._

_"Azula, just keep holding on!" Ty Lee cheered on her friend. Mai only continued pulling on the rope._

_Azula didn't reply, it was a virtually impossible action as she kept rising and falling beneath the waves. She could barely even hear Ty Lee anyway over the roaring waters. Azula's luck was quickly running out as she tried to adjust her grip on the rope. Instead of gaining a better hold of it, the rope quickly slipped through her fingers._

_The last thing Azula remembered was hearing Ty Lee scream and look down at her in horror._

.:**b**.**e**.**a**.**u**.**t.i.f**.**u**.**l**:.:_l_._i_._e_._s_:.

Slowly, Azula opened her eyes. She allowed them to focus and she realized she was in excruciating pain. Almost every part of her body ached, especially her left arm and her head.

Glancing around the room, Azula wondered where the hell she could be. The princess knew she couldn't be dead. If she had been dead, she wouldn't have been in so much pain. Carefully, she sat up in her...well, bed, which was nothing more than a few blankets and a pillow.

"Damn, " she growled, seeing her arm fashioned into a crude splint. A broken arm would take forever to heal. Using her right hand, Azula pulled the blanket that covered her slender body off and then she crawled over to the nearest crate. By bracing herself with the crate, Azula managed to pull herself up to her feet. She grew light-headed for a moment and struggled to keep her balance.

"How long was I out for?" Azula wondered, tentatively taking a small step away from the crate after she picked up a blanket and wrapped it around her thin form. Azula needed to cover herself up in some way, otherwise she was practically naked! She took another step, then another. So far, so good. Soon she was standing a good three feet away from the crate and was now clinging to the wall. Azula was unaccustomed to feeling this weak and helpless. She hated it, loathed it, detested it. Princess Azula of the Fire Nation was not a weak little girl who required rescuing! She would rather die with her honor than be humiliated like this. Even if she was alone at the moment.

Tenderly, Azula moved the curtain door to the side so she could exit the little house. Immediately her pupils contracted because of the bright afternoon sun. Her hand flew to above her eyes to create just a little bit of shade as her eyes adjusted to the light. Azula inspected her surroundings, she was in some sort of forest. There were vibrant green trees swaying with the breeze for as far as her amber eyes could see. There were more of these little houses as well as bridges that connected them all. Ropes and vines hung from branches with knots tied at the bottoms. They were obviously used for swinging around the tree tops like a bunch of uncivilized apes.

What in the world was this place? A little city that lived up in the trees or what? Maybe they were powerful, but obviously they were hiding from the Fire Nation. A small smirk grew on Azula's face. Once she had recovered from her injuries, she'd get to burn down this forest and destroy the tree top town all by herself. Just the thought of the fire consuming these trees and all of their inhabitants was giving the princess quite a mood boost. Azula was cautious as she headed for the bridge that led to the next little house. She didn't want to overexert herself so soon after waking up, but she was curious. So far, she hadn't seen anyone, but obviously there had to be someone. How else could she have made it up into the trees? She had fallen into the river and had been knocked unconscious!

Azula grasped onto the rough rope edge of the bridge, making sure to test each worn wooden plank before she put her full weight on it. She tried not to make that much noise, but alas, the planks creaked with each step the princess took. Not being able to be stealthy and sneaky angered Azula, but she wasn't really in a position to argue.

From higher up in the trees, the Duke looked down and watched the girl emerge from the hut she had been asleep in for quite a few days now. The young boy stared at her with his jaw agape for a moment. It was just...odd seeing her on her feet! The Duke rushed from his place, swinging from rope to rope, running across bridge to bridge.

"Jet? Where are you? You gotta come see something!" the Duke called out as he ran, he caught the attention of all the freedom fighters except for Jet. Smellerbee poked her head out of her tent, she looked confused. She had wanted to just take a little nap that afternoon after that wild party that dinner had turned into last night.

"I don't think Jet's even around right now. I think him and Longshot went out hunting or something." Smellerbee explained, rubbing her eyes as she tried to wake up a little more.

Azula stopped dead in her tracks and tightly pushed herself up against a tree trunk. She heard voices in the distance. They weren't that far away, but they were far enough that she couldn't understand them clearly. Until she knew what she was dealing with, Azula didn't want to take any chances.

"What? Aww man! 'Cause that girl, the one he carried up here the other day, she's up! And she's walking around and stuff!" the Duke exclaimed. That definitely woke Smellerbee up.

"What!?" She screeched, "And you didn't tell her to go lay back down? That girl is in no shape to be exploring our hideout. I know its probably a little overwhelming for her, but gah!" Smellerbee climbed down a ladder, then ran across the bridge to the Duke.

"She looked fine to me, aside from the fact that she's wrapped herself up in a blanket, not that I blame her and stuff, and I thought Jet would want to see her and stuff, so I came to find him, but I suppose you'll do," he shrugged, Smellerbee grunted and grabbed the Duke's wrist and started pulling him off towards the storage hut where the girl had been.

The princess crept further into the leafy domain, almost flinching at every noise she heard. Azula had to be on her guard, she knew. Even if she was in no shape to be fighting, she would fight if she had to. There was no doubt in her mind that even if she was injured, she'd still be able to take down quite a few attackers who tried to question her.

...Especially if all of her attackers were just little kids like the two that now stood in front of her. One looked to be about eight or nine years old, the other taller one looked to be between the ages of ten and thirteen. Azula really couldn't tell. She was also a bit confused whether the taller one was a girl or a boy.

"Glad to see you're alive," the taller one said, smirking. Nope, Azula still couldn't figure out if it was a girl or a boy.

"She's really tall, Smellerbee!" the Duke announced, Smellerbee simply glared down at him.

"Where am I?" Azula demanded.

"In a forest." Smellerbee told her shortly.

"I figured that much." Azula muttered, rolling her eyes.

"We're all freedom fighters, and our leader, Jet rescued you the other day, you've been out cold for a few days," the Duke explained to her with a smile. Smellerbee lightly punched him in the shoulder. Little brat had ruined her fun of messing with the obviously confused girl.

"I see..." Azula replied, looking back and forth between the two.

"Yeah, we all live up here in the trees and stuff because we're all orphans. The Fire Nation killed all our parents." Smellerbee stated, "Now come on, you're in no shape to be walking around just yet. Let's get you back in bed."

"If you can even call it that," Azula grumbled under her breath.

"Hey, it was the best we could do on such short notice, alright? Its better than nothing, is it not? Jet could have just left you there to die. Would you rather have had him do that?"

"Perhaps I would have." Azula told her coldly, getting an annoyed 'Hmph,' from Smellerbee.

"Duke, go find Pipsqueak and tell him to make something to eat because I'm sure that girliegirl here is hungry and thirsty and all that junk, " Smellerbee ordered the boy, he nodded and turned around. Smellerbee stopped him, though, "Wait, and make sure that you, or just...someone alerts Jet to sleeping beauty's awakening."

"Yeah, sure, " the Duke replied, then running off to find Pipsqueak.

"Now you, come with me so you can at least sit back down and not get all the boys around here all excited. Its kinda inevitable because they're used to me being the only girl, and obviously, I'm not a very pretty sight for sore eyes. You, on the other hand, you actually have boobs." Smellerbee said, leading Azula back to the storage hut. So she was a girl, a very, very tomboyish girl. Azula would have blushed at her comment, but Azula wasn't the type to blush. Ever. Reluctantly, the princess followed the tomboy back to that hut. Once they reached it, Smellerbee ordered Azula to sit back down. Azula obliged, but only because she thought it was the best thing to do at the moment. Even if she knew she could take down this little girl in the blink of an eye, Azula didn't want to cause any trouble...yet.

"So, I'm Smellerbee. I'm sure you have a name, so what is it?"

Azula thought for a brief moment. It wouldn't be the best thing to give the girl her real name. If they knew who she really was, they could attempt to hold her hostage. The princess was certain that she could escape from a bunch of kids in tree houses, but she still didn't want to take the chance. Better safe than sorry, right?

"Akuen. My name is Akuen. " Azula lied smoothly, looking the girl in the eyes directly to make sure there was no doubt at all in her mind that Azula's name was actually Akuen.

"Hmph. I almost expected your name to be Princess Bitchface or something ridiculous like that...But, nice to meet you, I suppose." Smellerbee said with a fake, teasing smile.

"Oh, you have no idea, girl." Azula thought, smirking.

"Same here." Azula said, allowing her smirk to morph into a sugary and sweet smile. Even if that was just as fake as Smellerbee's smile.

With a giant grin, Pipsqueak walked into the hut, carrying a plate full of lychee nuts and a few small fish.

"Here, I brought some lunch for her, Smellerbee!" He exclaimed, handing the plate to Smellerbee. With a raised eyebrow Smellerbee took it from him and handed it to Akuen. Why didn't he just hand it to Akuen in the first place instead of handing it to her?

"I hope you like lychee nuts and fruit, Akuen...Pipsqueak, don't we have any more jelly candy? I'm sure she'd like some of that too...Or are you just hiding the last barrel so you can have them all to yourself?" Smellerbee accused him, he took a step back, waving his hands defensively.

"Nono! She can have some! She is the guest after all..." Pipsqueak... well, squeaked.

"Go get some then, or its...for you." Smellerbee said as she drew two fingers across her throat, signaling that she'd violently maim him if he didn't bring back some of that candy, "And she has a name, you know, dumbass. Her name's Akuen, so start calling her as such or I'll kill you for that too."

"Fine, fine." Pipsqueak said nervously, rushing out to get some jelly candy for them all to share.

Azula stared down at the plate for a moment, wondering how in the world she was supposed to eat this. They hadn't given her chopsticks or anything, what did they expect her to do, eat it with her hands like a barbarian? That was disgusting, but the Princess saw no other options. And she was not about to ask for chopsticks, that was slightly beneath her dignity. Azula picked up one of the fish and started pulling little bits of meat off of the bones, putting it in her mouth. Honestly, it was disgusting, but tolerable. Of course, Azula was used to fancy multi-course dinners held in the palace filled with all sorts of different foods that were covered in the spiciest spices. Something this fish desperately needed.

Smellerbee found Akuen's eating habits to be quite entertaining. Akuen was so quiet, so reserved. The way she picked and picked at the fish and struggled to eat a whole lychee was so funny.

"Jet better get his ass back here soon, I'm getting sick of playing mommy." Smellerbee muttered under her breath. Azula looked up at her from her food.

"You don't have to play mommy. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself, thank you." Azula said before popping another nut between her lips. Smellerbee laughed.

"Are you kidding? Ha, you're in no shape to be doing much of anything."

"I could still kick your ass." Azula told her, not realizing that such a...foul word had escaped her lips. True, she was ruthless and sadistic, but she never spoke like that...Father would have killing her for such disrespect...So maybe that's why it felt so good to talk like that.

"Ooh, we have a cocky little girl on our hands, don't we? I'd like to see you try it. Make a fool of yourself, go ahead, I don't mind."

Smellerbee teased, crossing her arms, "Actually, you sound a lot like Jet. This is gonna be epic, gettin you two in the same room together."

"What do you mean by 'epic'?" Azula questioned, setting her half eaten plate to the side. She wasn't really that hungry anyway. Smellerbee just smirked.

"You'll see...Just don't be surprised if me and Longshot start selling--" Smellerbee was cut off as Pipsqueak, the Duke and Jet entered. Smellerbee shot up and launched herself at Jet, giving him a great big hug. Smiling, he returned it, but pushed her off quickly.

"I was starting you'd never come back! I was getting so sick and tired of playing mommy to Miss Bitchface over here!" Smellerbee complained, Jet only laughed at her overly dramatic expression.

"Why wouldn't I come back? I couldn't leave you, Longshot and Pipsqueak in charge of everything!" Jet told her. Pipsqueak pushed passed the two, the Duke followed him. They both carried a few small drawstring bags that were full of that jelly candy from the Fire Nation. Pipsqueak squeezed himself into the spot that Smellerbee had previously occupied and sat down. He handed Azula a few of the bags of jelly candy. The Duke sat next to Pipsqueak and did the same.

"There you go, Miss Akuen, some jelly candy!" Pipsqueak said, pouring some of the tasty candies out into his hand and throwing them one by one up in his mouth.

"Thanks." Azula replied absently. She wasn't concerned about stupid candy right now. She was more interested in the boy that Smellerbee was conversing with. He obviously must have been their leader, Jet, Smellerbee had called him. From what Azula could see, he was a total mess. His hair was all over, scraggly and uneven. His clothes were beat up, torn and burned. Just by the way he stood there, Azula could tell he was confident. He thought he was better than everyone else, though he hid it well. That bugged Azula. Because no one had the right to think they were better than her. She was the crown princess of the Fire Nation, heir to the throne. She'd be the Fire Lady once her father kicked the bucket.

"Why didn't you just let me die?" Azula said suddenly, her voice dripping with malice as her sharp tone pierced everyone's ears. They all looked at her, eyes wide with shock at her statement. Smellerbee could only smile, though.

She just had a little feeling in the pit of her stomach that things around here were, in fact, going to get pretty, well, _epic._

**A/N:** I'm sorry, I hope I'm not screwing Azula's character up too much! I have to mess with her a little bit though, otherwise Jet would already be dead and that'd be bad for Jetzula. :)


	3. Chapter 3

.:**b**.**e**.**a**.**u**.**t.i.f**.**u**.**l**:.:_l_._i_._e_._s_:.

_"Why didn't you just let me die?"_

Jet turned with a smirk as she spoke. So she was just some suicidal little girl.

"Now why in the world would I do a thing like that? You're not Fire Nation, are you?" He asked, squatting down next to her. Her eyes were beautiful, like the rest of her, even if they were full of so much hate. They were so bright, a color he had never seen before, "Besides, you're too pretty. What kind of guy would I be if I just let a pretty girl like you just die, hmm?"

Azula didn't speak. She only stared him down. She didn't like that he was this close to her, especially after he made that indirect threat to her life. She could feel his warm breath going down her neck. Not many things ever made Azula nervous, but this boy was. There were a million things she could say to him right now, a million ways she could kill him, even if she was wounded. But none of the things she could do or say would keep her true identity a secret. Mentally, the princess slapped herself, cursing her normally cunning wit for not being there for her when she needed it the most.

"One, I don't know why you'd do something like that, two, I'm not Fire Nation, I was born and raised here in the Earth Kingdom and three, why should I care what kind of guy you are?" Azula spat coldly, lying like she always did. Jet only laughed at her comments. He picked up her half eaten lunch and stood, handing the plate to Pipsqueak.

"Here, you can have the rest of this, " Jet told him, Pipsqueak grinned and left, stuffing his face with Azula's leftovers, "Smellerbee, Longshot wanted to see you," Jet told her, she raised an eyebrow.

"He does not, you're just trying to get rid of all of us so you can be alone with girliegirl." Smellerbee snapped. The Duke giggled at Smellerbee's rotten words.

"Jet and Akuen, sittin' in a tree-" He was cut off by Smellerbee, who punched him in the arm.

"Shut up, stupid."

"Yeah? So what if I'm trying to get rid of you? She needs her bandages changed. I'm sure no one has changed them yet today, and plus, Smellerbee, you really should go find some clothes for her to wear."

"Are you just afraid you'll end up getting a nosebleed?" Smellerbee joked, "Come on, Duke. Let's go. You know how Jet gets over anything that has boobs."

"-But that water tribe girl didn't have boobs!" the Duke exclaimed.

"Yeah, well, Jet still thought she was hot."

"You two, shut your freakin' traps and get the hell out of here, alright?" Jet growled, a little blush tinting his cheeks. Azula quietly snickered to herself as Jet's two colleagues mocked him.

"Whatever." Bee mumbled, putting her hand on the Duke's shoulder to lead him out of the hut.

Finally, they were alone. As awkward as this would be, Jet was happy he would finally get a chance to talk to her. He wanted to know what the hell she had been doing so close to the river that she fell in. He just wanted to know everything he could about her. From what he could tell already, she was a little firecracker, ready to blow at any moment. Maybe this girl would prove to be a valuable asset to his band of rebels. Plus, even if Smellerbee was already berating the injured girl, Jet knew she'd enjoy having another female around the tree house.

"Sorry about them, they can be pretty immature at times but you'll get used to them...eventually," Jet said, smiling sweetly. Here came the awkward...

Silence.

"I'm also sorry if you didn't want to be saved, but hey, how was I supposed to know that? I just saw a pretty girl laying on the riverbanks unconscious. Any halfway decent guy would have come saved you."

A little more silence fell between them, but then Azula spoke.

"Its fine," She said softly, looking down at her arm in the splint. She tried to push past the wrappings and scratch a particularly annoying itch.

"So, we still haven't had a real introduction...I'm Jet and I'm the leader of this crazy group of rebels. We don't do much, but we mess with Fire Nation troops as much as we possibly can," He explained. Without emotion, Azula replied,

"Everyone must do their part."

"Yeah, exactly..." Yuck, another awkward silence, "So your name is...?"

"Akuen, thats all you need to know," Azula replied, the lie coming so naturally from her lips.

"That's a very pretty name, you know, "Jet complimented her, his voice growing soft and almost...almost a little bit seductive.

"...Thanks...I was named after my...grandmother," Azula told him, refusing to look up at him. She focused on trying to get some of the knots out of her long hair. It felt disgusting. Azula managed to get quite a few knots out of her hair, but then she came upon a rather stubborn one. After a few attempts at simply brushing through it with her fingers, Azula tried to pull it apart. That, however, only resulted in pulling hair that was close to the wound on the back of her head. With a short yelp, Azula's hand shot up to hold her pounding head. She grimaced, looking down at her blanket covered lap.

"Are you alright?" Jet inquired, Azula nodded.

"I'm fine," She snapped, softly rubbing her head.

"I should change that bandage for you..." Jet said, reaching for one of the spare, clean pieces of linen and the bottle of ointment.

"I can take care of myself, thank you, "Azula growled, snatching the bandage first, then the bottle. It was hard to grab things when one of your arms was tied up in a splint and was pulsing with pain. With her right hand, she attempted to reach up and untie the bandage, but it obviously wouldn't work. She was getting rather irritated, Jet could see. He sighed, smiling.

"Let me help you. It'll take you an hour to untie that knot at this rate."

"So? I don't care, I'd rather not have you--" Azula stopped mid-sentence, her eyes wide as he placed one of his hands over hers and pried it away from the knot. His hands were rough and calloused, hardly a pleasant feeling, "...touch...me..." Azula finished as he untied the knot effortlessly and then pulled the dirty bandage away from her head. Jet tossed it to the side and moved closer to Azula. He parted her hair where the wound was to inspect it. It was healing quickly and it was scabbed over nicely. It took every ounce of Azula's self control to not turn and burn this...Jet to a crisp. Didn't he know he was invading her personal space without permission? Honestly.

"I think it looks good enough to leave a bandage off, letting the air get at it will help it heal faster, " Jet said, ignoring her bitter words. He didn't care if she didn't want him touching her in any way, shape or form. He'd be the one to take care of her, regardless if she wanted him to or not. Until she was well enough to leave, she was his responsibility.

"Great, " Azula mumbled with a sigh, trying to cross her arms. She wasn't too sucessful though, with her left arm in a ratty splint. Regardless, Azula hoped her body language would send him the message that she wanted him to just to away.

Mission failed.

Jet plopped up against the side of a crate, relaxing a bit. He pulled out a piece of ragweed that he had tucked in his clothes and placed it in his mouth.

"So where'd ya come from, Miss Akuen?" He asked, almost sarcastically, but he was curious.

"None of your business, " Azula replied coldly, "And why do you care anyway?"

"Just because. Its not every day someone pops out of nowhere. I'm just curious," Jet explained, holding the weed between his fingers so he could speak, then replacing it between his lips.

"Curiousity killed the pumacat."

"Is that a threat?" Jet smirked, almost laughing at her simply because of the tone she used. Akuen was so bitter, so rude, but she was beautiful. That was one thing Jet couldn't deny even if he tried.

"Maybe it is. Keep asking questions and you'll find out, " Azula grumbled.

"Wow, you're a rather naughty girl, aren't you?"

"You have no idea."

---

Longshot had simply been practicing with his bow and arrow. Not that he really needed to, he already had enough skill to be a formidable foe to even the best Fire Nation YuYan archer. There just wasn't anything better to do. Pipsqueak was off doing...whatever Pipsqueak did, so was Sneers. And the Duke wasn't bothering him at all, he was probably just up to no good, playing pranks or clinging to Smellerbee. Longshot had a pretty good idea what Smellerbee was up to. She was probably off being bitter about that girl Jet saved. Longshot knew she was just being jealous, she was just used to being the only girl around.

"Hey, Longshot!" Smellerbee called, interuppting Longshot. His arrow ended up flying totally off course and went right past the tree he had been aiming at. Rolling his eyes, he turned to see Smellerbee. She had various articles of clothing thrown over her shoulders, a few pairs of pants, some old beat up tops which Longshot recognized as Jet's and she carried a few pairs of shoes, most with holes in the toes. Longshot raised an eyebrow, inquiring what in the world Smellerbee was doing and if he wanted to really know or not.

"Its all for that girliegirl. She needs some clothes so she isn't running around in her underwear. I came to see if you had any extra things you could donate to the cause. I dunno what's gonna fit her and stuff and I'd rather not have to keep running all around the trees to track down more clothes," Smellerbee ranted, Longshot only watched her, nodding softly. He slung his bow on his back and motioned for Smellerbee to follow him. She followed, juggling all of the clothes, sighing, Longshot stopped and snatched the pile she had thrown over her left shoulder.

"Thanks, but you really don't hafta do that, you know. I'm perfectly capable of carrying all of this myself. I'm not weak like girliegirl, "Smellerbee protested, trying to snag the clothing back from him. He wouldn't let her, though. Defeated, Smellerbee groaned, "Have you even seen her yet, Longshot? Aside from the day Jet dragged her here?"

Longshot shook his head, giving her a silent reply of "No, not really."

"You should go see her. She's so...gah, I really don't even know how to explain her. I don't like her...but you know that, I keep telling you that and you're probably ready to just punch me in the face, "Smellerbee continued, "I almost guarantee that you won't like her either...bleh, no I don't just because you're Longshot and you always show complete indifference to everyone and anyone and you never ever talk, so why am I talking to you?"

Longshot shrugged as he handed her a rope so they could swing down to the next platform. Smellerbee took it and swung down, landing gracefully, even if she was weighed down by all the cloth. Longshot came down right after her, landing right next to her on his feet, like a cat.

"I don't know, maybe because it just seems like you're actually listening to me, when you're probably not, but whatever..."

With a sigh that was barely there, Longshot turned on the balls of his feet and stepped right in front of Smellerbee. He looked down at her sternly, placing his hands on her shoulders. His gaze said something along the lines of,

_"Of course I do, I always listen to you."_

"You can't possibly-Ugh, you dumbass. I hate you." Smellerbee growled, pushing him away from her. She stomped past him, storming into his small tent. With a shrug and a smile, Longshot followed her into his tent. He kneeled down by his bedding and started looking through his neatly folded pile of clothes. Smellerbee plopped next to him, setting all the clothes she had already collected beside her. Longshot handed her a red tunic that was missing the sleeves. Smellerbee held it up and examined it, then tossed it on top of the pile.

"That looks like it'll fit over her chest nicely," Smellerbee said, Longshot rolled his eyes as he grabbed a pair of pants that he didn't particularly like and showed them to his female companion. Without holding them up, Smellerbee just added them to the pile too.

"I don't even know why the heck I'm collecting so many clothes for her, I mean, I already have more than enough, plus the other stuff that Jet's donating to the cause. I guess I'm just using this as an excuse to vent..."

After concluding that he didn't posess any more clothing he could give up, Longshot folded everything back up and then gathered all of the clothes Smellerbee had dropped on the floor up in his arms.

"I told you, you don't need help carrying this crap. I'm perfectly capable of doing it myself!" She protested, trying to grab the clothes from him, but he wouldn't let her. He held them up just high enough so she couldn't grab anything. Longshot almost laughed. Almost.

"Fine, you win, " Smellerbee declared, defeated. She crossed her arms and stomped out of the tent, Longshot trailing close behind with a big smile. He always thought she looked so cute when she got all angry at him like that.

---

A/N: Sorry this chapter is so short guys! School has been eating at my brain, lol.


	4. Chapter 4

.:**b**.**e**.**a**.**u**.**t.i.f**.**u**.**l**:.:_l_._i_._e_._s_:.

An awkward silence had fallen between them, and the only sound around the two happened to be the annoying chirping of birds. With the absence of sounds, a rather nasty itch on Azula's left arm appeared. Under the splint. She tried to stick her fingers under the bindings to scratch it, but no matter what angle she tried, the princess couldn't reach it. With a frustrated grunt, Azula looked up and around for anything within her reach that she could try to shove down there to scratch that damn itch. As Jet watched her failed attempts at scratching, he laughed a bit. Scowling at him darkly, Azula plucked the piece of ragweed from his lips and tried to use that. It may have been kind of flimsy and wet with his spit, but it still relieved that stupid itch. But by relieving one itch, it only caused more to appear.

"Dammit," Azula cursed, leaning back, resting her head on the wall behind her and staring up at the thatched celing. She threw the weed to the ground and then slammed her right fist on the floor. Jet continued to chuckle at her. Without words, he took her left hand and placed it in his lap. As soon as he touched her, Azula's gaze snapped towards him, raising an eyebrow. What was he doing?

Oh...that's what he was doing, he was untying the bindings of her splint. Once he had finished working on the last knot, he gently slid the wood off of her arm.

"Thanks..." Azula muttered, rubbing her arm and looking at him with a confused expression.

"Be careful, don't scratch too hard you pop the bone back out of place again. I don't think Smellerbee wants to come and set it again for you. "

"She doesn't like me too much, does she?" Azula asked, carefully scratching each itch that appeared on her arm as they came.

"Naw, it just takes 'Bee forever to trust anyone," Jet assured her, "Are you done yet? I don't want to leave your arm out of a splint for too long..."

"I suppose," Azula said, handing him her arm so he could tie the splint back around it. Delicately, he took her hand and placed it in his lap again, sliding the pieces of wood over the broken limb. Jet struggled a few moments to tie it down to her arm, but eventually he got it to stay in place.

Another silence fell between them.

"So what do you want to know about me?" Azula asked as she quickly prepared a halfway plausible story for her new alter-ego, Akuen.

"Anything, I guess," Jet shrugged.

"You know my name," she told him casually, getting him him to smile and shake his head.

"I'd like to know a little more than your name."

"Well, I don't know much else about you aside from your name, so if I tell you the lovely story of my life, you must tell me the lovely story of yours."

Truthfully, she could see most of his life plainly written on his face and etched in his dark eyes, but she wanted to hear it from him, just because she wanted to test herself. The princess hadn't had a good opportunity to test that particular skill of hers in a while, and this was just a perfect opportunity.

"What's there to know? I live up in the trees and try to make life a living hell for anyone from the Fire Nation that happens to cross my path," Jet looked away, trying to hide the pain in his eyes.

"The Fire Nation killed your parents," Azula stated dully. He nodded, still refusing to look at her. In a rare moment, Azula was feeling rather...nice, so she concocted an elaborate lie just for him. "I grew up in Ba Sing Se...but then for some reason my father wanted to move to this tiny little town that wasn't too far outside of Omashu. We had been almost completely settled down, but then my father was drafted into the war. He died about a year later," she finished with a sad little sigh.

"I'm sorry, " Jet replied, glancing up at her.

"No need to be, it's not your fault the Fire Nation is trying to take over the world and is succeeding," Azula said, biting her lip as though she were worried, but actually smirking on the inside. Azula loved the thought of all the insolent fools who dared to oppose the Fire Nation. While it was a small tragedy that people like Jet lost their families, it was just one of the side effects that came with war. There had to be casualties, a war without deaths would hardly be a war at all.

"What were you doing all alone in the forest, in the middle of a thunderstorm?" Jet questioned, trying to change the subject to something a little less painful.

"Looking for...my brother. He disappeared a few days ago..." That wasn't a complete lie. She had been looking for Zuko and she had only seen him a few days ago. Azula had long since found that half truths were better than outright lies.

"I take it you were pretty close to him?"

"Yeah, you could say that, " Now if that wasn't a lie, Azula didn't know what was. Zuko was a good for nothing idiot as far as she was concerned. "Do you have any siblings?"

"No, but Smellerbee is practically my little sister. When the Fire Nation came through and destroyed our town, I kinda took her in."

Azula laughed a little. "Good luck with that."

"Yeah, she's crazy, but she's a valuable warrior. She's very skilled with a blade, " Jet said.

"Hell yeah I'm crazy!" Smellerbee exclaimed as she pushed her way through, making a rather...dramatic entrance. Longshot came in behind her, juggling all the clothes in his arms.

"We know, Smellerbee," Jet laughed and shook his head.

"And don't you dare ever forget it either!" She smirked, putting her hands on her hips. Longshot simply walked over to Azula and dumped the pile of clothes near Azula's feet. "I hope you don't mind, Jet, but I raided your clothes too. These are for you, girliegirl. You can just pick through this stuff and figure out what you want. We'll prolly be able to get you stuff that fits you better the next time we go into town or something...we just need to cover you up for now. Save Jet a nosebleed or two."

"Smellerbee, shut up, " Jet snapped.

"Make me!" Smellerbee said. Longshot found this to be a perfect opportunity to go back to practicing with his beloved bow and arrow. Things with Smellerbee were just...getting awkward. Without anyone really noticing, he slipped out of the hut.

"I do believe it would be in your best interest to follow orders and be quiet," Azula said in a practiced tone of voice- casual, but still an order.

"Hey, I don't have to listen to you, bitchface. You're lucky enough that I ran around collecting all this for you. Don't even go there," Smellerbee spat, narrowing her eyes and glaring at Azula.

"Smellerbee, chill," Jet said, waving his hand to silence the younger girl.

"Whatever," Smellerbee sighed, "Don't you think you should get out of here so she can try stuff on? I think she'd probably rather get naked in front of another girl than in front of your horny ass."

Azula couldn't help but laugh a little at their banter. "It's alright, I don't mind him," Azula lied...a little. "If he tries anything, I can defend myself, I assure you."

"Whatever, if you end up pregnant, its not my fault," Smellerbee rolled her eyes, leaving the hut. She'd go bother Pipsqueak. Bothering him was always fun. Once she was out of earshot, Jet turned back to look at Azula.

"I won't try anything on you, I promise. Smellerbee makes me out to be such a bastard sometimes..." Jet assured her, crawling over to the pile of clothes and starting to dig through them.

"But she's right, most members of the male species are bastards. Why should you be an exception?" Azula asked, and was rewarded by Jet's chuckle coming from somewhere underneath the Most Hideous Pants of the Century.

"Wow. And all you members of the female species think you're so cunning!"

"Its the truth, though."

"And cocky..." Jet whispered, throwing a red and black tunic her way. The left sleeve was completely ripped off, so he thought it would make caring for her broken arm easier. Azula caught it above her head and set it down in her lap.

"You shouldn't be talking, you're pretty cocky yourself," Azula smirked.

"Oh no, you caught me!" Jet joked, tossing a pair of dark gray pants up towards her. They would probably be a little too big for her, but the smaller pair that was in the pile was made of a thick fabric, for the winter months. Better too big than too small though, right? Whatever, he thought.

Jet stood up and held his hand out for Azula. She stared at him, not knowing what to do. Get up on her own and possibly make a fool of herself? The last time she stood up she had to brace herself on the wall. Or she could give him the satisfaction of helping her. Prior to properly analyzing the situation, however, she slipped her hand into his and held on. He tightened his grip around her hand and pulled her up. Once she was standing, she didn't regain her balance right away and fell into him. Jet stepped back a bit, but held onto her tightly, pressing his other hand into the small of her back. It was gentle enough, but still supported her.

Time seemed to freeze for a moment as they stood there. Azula looked up at him, looked into his dark eyes and she could have sworn everything in her body stopped functioning. No breath, no heart beat, no nothing. In that moment, she realized she had never been this close to a man before, excluding the men in her family, such as her father and brother. Losing himself in her eyes, for that moment, everything escaped him. He had no name, no place, nothing and all he knew of was the fact that this...stunningly beautiful girl was practically clinging to him.

Like all great things, though, it ended abruptly as Azula stepped back and untangled her hand from his.

"Are you alright, Akuen?" he managed to whisper. She nodded, tossing her nose in the air to regain her dignity.

"I'm fine," she snapped.

"I suppose I should help you get dressed then, shouldn't I?" He questioned. Against all logic she nodded again, handing him the tunic to hold while she put on the pants. Not trusting her balance at the moment, Azula braced herself by holding onto Jet's shoulder. Quickly she put them on. While she tied them so they'd fit her tiny form better, Jet held out the tunic so it would be easier for her to slip on over her splinted arm. Azula followed his lead and put her arms through the sleeves as he slipped the tunic over her shoulders. He let his hands linger there for a moment before he let them fall to his sides again. Azula tied it shut and smiled at him, amused.

"Hopefully, Smellerbee will stop her complaining now..."

"She better, but knowing her, she won't," Jet muttered. Azula snickered to herself.

"Well, what now?" she asked, placing some stubborn locks of hair behind her ear.

"A tour, perhaps, if you're feeling up to swinging from tree to tree, " Jet suggested with a smirk.

"Do you want me to kill myself?"

"No, but would you rather just sit around doing nothing?"

"That actually sounds pretty good right now...I could go for a nap, or something..." Azula yawned, stretching her arms.

"Alright, that works too. Do you need anything else?" Jet asked her as she carefully sat back down in her bed. Azula thought for a moment and an idea hit her.

"Actually, by any chance, would there happen to be some rice paper, a brush and some ink around?...I like to doodle," Azula explained. Truth to be told, drawing was not one of her preferred activities. She just needed to write everything that was going through her head down, maybe that would help her make sense of it and organize her thoughts. After what had just happened between her and Jet, Azula needed to make sure she wasn't imagining things, or dreaming, or anything else of that nature.

"I can't make any promises, but I can see what I can do. If I can't find anything, I'll put it on the shopping list. Do you want me to come get you for dinner, or would you rather have me bring your dinner?"

"Dinner sounds good. Just make sure I'm not sitting anywhere near Smellerbee," Azula joked, laying her head down on her pillow in a perfectly princessly dainty way and pulling the blanket up and over her shoulders.

"Don't worry about it, I'll always be there to protect you," Jet whispered back at her before leaving her to take her nap. But once he left, Azula's eyes shot back open and she stared out after them, a confused look plastered to her face.

"...Did he just say...what I thought he said?" She said to herself, quietly, before shrugging it off and curling back under the covers. A princess needed her beauty sleep after all, even if she was in the middle of nowhere.

---

A/N: This is shorter than the last, and I was having major issues with characterization. I've been beating myself up about it the past few days, lol. Hope I didn't do too bad, hope I'm not rushing things too much, since it seems like I am. Oh well, its fanon. I can do what I want, right?


	5. Chapter 5

.:**b**.**e**.**a**.**u**.**t.i.f**.**u**.**l**:.:_l_._i_._e_._s_:.

It was a little chilly when Azula woke up at the crack of dawn. For the most part it was still dark outside, except for a few slivers of light that peeked out and crashed against the clouds, announcing the morning. Slowly, Azula crawled out of her bed, rubbing her eyes with a yawn. This was the first time she had woken up before dawn since she had brought to this strange tree house sanctuary. She stood up, her usual grace had returned to her. The wobbly, unbalanced girl from a few days ago was a thing of the past. Bending over, Azula picked up her blanket and flipped it over her shoulders. She then headed out of the hut and into the morning darkness.

The stars and moon were still sparkling, but tints of yellow and orange were seeping through. Azula crossed her arms and sighed, leaning up against the wooden wall. Near the river, the trees parted, allowing a wonderful view of the eastern horizon.

Waking up early like this had been the first bit of normalcy that the princess had experienced since she had first arrived, three days ago. Her eyes slipped closed as a gentle breeze swept through the forest and blew gently through her thick black hair. It was a refreshing change, Azula thought, pretending to be this Akuen girl, this alter ego. Azula knew that her duty was to her father and the Fire Nation, so not working towards her goal of capturing her brother and the Avatar was driving her crazy. True, Azula knew she had to fully recover from all of her injuries before trying to resume her mission. A broken arm would take at least a month to heal. She felt pretty useless too, Jet had been doing almost everything for her.

The three days that had passed had already seemed like months. Time just stopped here.

"Didn't expect you to be up..." Jet whispered as he stepped off the rope bridge and noticed Azula's presence. He smiled, even if she couldn't see. Azula jumped a little, not expecting him. She was startled, but not noticeably. She turned to face him, though she didn't really look at him. Her eyes were empty.

"I like the sunrise...its usually a habit of mine to get up early and watch it..." Azula said, but then turned back towards the sky. It was slowly getting lighter, brighter.

"It is beautiful, isn't it?" Jet asked, keeping his distance from her. He was almost tempted to tell her that the sunrise wasn't and never would be as beautiful as she was. He decided not to, though. Not yet, at least. He barely knew her at all, he didn't know how she'd react to it.

"It is..." Azula agreed absently.

"Here, I was coming to leave this with you, so you'd wake up and there it'd all be for you..." Jet explained, stepping closer to her so he could hand her the paper, ink and brushes. Azula adjusted her blanket over her shoulders so she could pop her arm out to take the supplies from him.

"Thank you, " Azula told him as he handed over the stack of paper.

"Took these past few days for me to find all this stuff for you, but I got it."

"You didn't have to go through all that trouble for me, " Azula murmured, looking down at her bare feet, hiding the rosy blush that was creeping to her cheeks. If he hadn't been standing in front of her at the moment, the princess would have dealt herself a hard smack to her face.

"Of course I do, what kind of gentleman would I be if I didn't fulfill the requests of a pretty girl, such as yourself."

"Wow, you're just a stereotypical nobleman, aren't you?" Azula asked sarcastically.

"Thank you, Miss Akuen, I pride myself in my impeccable manners, " Jet said, bowed to her, mimicking a polite royal. Azula smiled at him, he was kind of cute- wait! No! He wasn't cute. His impression was cute.

"I should head back inside, " Azula mentioned, shaking her head a little to get her hair out of her face. Jet straightened his posture and only stared at her, asking her silently why she was trying to get away. The shine in his eyes dimmed, Azula noticed, he looked a little upset now. The princess bit the inside of her lip, then sighed. She'd probably regret this later, but a little voice in the back of her head was telling her to. Normally she ignored that particular voice, but no one would find out. Azula knew she'd probably end up killing him in the end anyway.

Silently, Azula stepped towards him, till their bodies were almost touching. She put her hands on his shoulders and used them to hoist herself up so she could whisper in his ear.

"Thank you for everything you've done, if it wasn't for you, I'd be dead..." Azula told him, softly, smiling a little.

"Anyone would have done the same," He murmured, pushing her off of him. Azula looked up at him, a little insulted.

"No, if I were you, I would have left me to die."

"I should go. Longshot and I need to go catch breakfast, " Jet explained, turning around swiftly, leaving her standing there.

"Fine, " Azula spat, quietly before storming back into the little house. She threw the paper and such down on the floor, the sheets flying all across the room. The brushes and vial of ink making quiet bangs as they all hit the floor.

Azula sat down on top of a crate, crossing her legs. The nerve of that stupid boy! Brushing her off completely! She knew he was infatuated, it was hard not to be infatuated with the princess. Every straight male that ever had had the pleasure of laying eyes on the princess was infatuated with her.

But why was she all upset about it? Azula slapped herself, mentally for even caring about what he did.

It was this damn forest, this damn, stupid forest, far away from anything Azula knew. It was this damn disguise, this girl who was practically Azula's complete opposite, this stupid, frail Akuen. That damn thunderstorm, causing her to get swept away to this place, this place that was challenging everything...

It would just have to be something else for the princess to overcome. It was a challenge, so she could overcome it, correct? And perhaps...even...make it work to her advantage?

Yes! She could make this work to her advantage! The beginnings of a devious plan formulated in her calculating mind, causing a smirk to grow on her face. She started laughing, jumping off of her perch on top of the crate.

"This will be all too easy..." Azula whispered to herself, laughing a little as she reached down to pick up the pieces of paper, the brushes, and the vial of ink.

---

"Where's Longshot?" Jet asked, upon running into Smellerbee near the center of the tree top hideaway.

"He's already down there, waiting for you, stupid. You're late, what were you doing?" Smellerbee asked him, crossing her arms and looking at him with a raised eyebrow. Jet only looked down at Smellerbee, glaring at her, his eyes saying, " You don't need to know what I was doing."

"You were with girliegirl, weren't you?" Smellerbee asked, though she already knew.

"Yeah, but you didn't need to know, " Jet muttered.

"Hey, am I not allowed to worry about you every once in a while? You're obsessing, again, " Smellerbee said.

"Don't I always obsess?" Jet asked, starting to climb up the ladder that was nailed into a tree. He needed to go fetch his hook swords. He'd be pretty useless hunting if he didn't have some kind of weapon on him. Once he had gotten them, he climbed back down.

"Just be careful, Jet...You're going to get yourself hurt again..." Smellerbee sighed.

"There's nothing between Akuen and me, so drop it, kay?"

"Yeah, just keep telling yourself that..." Smellerbee mumbled as Jet grabbed a rope and swung down to the ground.

---

_This is not a diary. It will not be a collection of all the trivial things that happen in my day to day life. I don't care what I've been eating, I don't care what I've been wearing. All of that is just useless information. This is, however, a reminder of all of my duties, all of my beliefs since everything around me seems to be causing all of my royal upbringing to come crashing down to the ground._

_In this strange, almost fairytale-esque forest, I cannot be myself, Princess Azula, daughter of Fire Lord Ozai and heir to the coveted Fire Nation throne. While I recover from various injuries, the worst of which is a broken arm, I must disguise myself as this stupid Earth Kingdom girl, Akuen. While it is refreshing to forget all of the constant rules that a self-respecting Princess must follow, I must not forget. My duty is to my country, to my people, my father. I must capture my idiot of a brother as well as suceed where he failed. I must capture the Avatar and quite possibly his sidekicks as well._

_I have been struck with a moment of brilliance, just a few moments ago, before I started writing this all down._

_I had been outside, conversing with the boy who rescued me, the rebel Jet. He is the leader of this rag-tag gang of freedom fighters. Albeit, he is cocky and completely unrefined, he is...well, tolerable I suppose you could say. If it wasn't for him, I would probably be dead. I can tell, I can see it in his eyes that, like most members of the male species, he is completely infatuated with me. I know I'm quite a sight to behold, but I am not your typical 'girlfriend' material._

_But I can use his infatuation with me to my advantage, as well as my alter-ego. When he asked me where I was from, I told him I grew up in Ba Sing Se, the capital of the Earth Kingdom. Using this disguise, I am certain that I can sneak behind the walls of the infamous city. Once I am behind the walls, however, there is little I can do alone. It would be near impossible, suicidal even, to attempt to overthrow the capital on my own. I know I am very powerful, but even I can't take on perhaps thousands of angry, passionate earthbenders._

_I need help. And help, may just come in the form of this young man, this Jet and his band of kids. One of the boys, Longshot, he has the precision and skill with a bow and arrow that a YuuYan archer has. Smellerbee, the only girl, has incredible talent with a blade. I'd even go as far to say she could rival Mai. Pipsqueak's strength is a very valuable asset indeed and the Duke's abilities as a stealthy spy would be very useful. From what I gather from the chatter between all of them, Jet is an amazing leader. He is charasmatic, he is able to lie to these children, tell them exactly what they want to hear to get them to keep fighting. And he's not afraid to sacrifice some for the cause._

_If I can get them all to trust me, to believe me like they do him, I suspect I will be able to trick them all into helping me overthrow Ba Sing Se. By the time they all figure out who I really am, it will be too late and victory will be mine. _

_That brings me to my next point of interest. How will I go about getting these little warriors to trust me? If I can get their leader to trust me , I think they will all learn to trust me as well. The quickest way of gaining Jet's trust, I imagine, will be to play off of his emotions. How he brushed me off earlier, it was clearly a sign of denial, he doesn't want to believe he has these feelings for me so soon, after such little time. I admit, though, it seems like more time has passed than three little days. Since I am such a wonderful actress, I'll make him fall for 'Akuen'._

_I do not have that much time, but I cannot rush and scare him off either. If things work, I can time this perfectly with the comet's arrival and my power will increase tenfold._

_I must go now, Smellerbee has come to summon me for our ritualistic, boring morning meal._

"Come on, Akuen, time for breakfast, " Smellerbee droned, leaning in Azula's doorway. Azula glanced up at the tomboy and then pushed the paper and ink to the side.

"Great, what are we-"

"Same old shit, " Smellerbee answered the question before Azula had an opportunity to finish asking.

"Perfect," Azula said sarcatically, standing up and brushing off her baggy clothes as best she could with one good hand. The two girls then headed down to the center of the complex system of treehouses and bridges, but of course, the short journey was not silent.

"Be careful, kay?" Smellerbee said, after both of them had remained silent for quite a long while.

"...What do you mean?" Azula asked sweetly.

"Jet, I see how he looks at you already, he's been looking at you that way since he brought you here," Bee explained.

"Oh, right," Azula bit her lip and looked down at her feet.

"So don't hurt him okay? Every girl he meets ends up trampling on him or something...and its hard to see someone you look up to like that in so much pain and you can't do anything about it..."

"I won't hurt him, I promise," Azula told the younger girl as they arrived for breakfast. Longshot and the Duke were dishing out the grub as Jet and Sneers watched over everyone coming in, taking a silent roll call.

"I'm gonna hold you to that, girlie, " Smellerbee mumbled as she and Azula split their separate ways.


End file.
